Dark comedy Birdman - which had started the evening with the most nominations at seven - and The Theory of Everything, about world-famous scientist Stephen Hawking, each took home two awards.

Birdman, about a washed-up film actor trying to revive his career on stage, took best musical/comedy actor prize for Michael Keaton, and best screenplay for director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu.

The Theory of Everything, the moving story of Professor Hawking's descent into disability, won best drama actor honors for Britain's Eddie Redmayne, as well as best original score.

The film was directed by James Marsh and written and produced by prolific Taranaki writer Anthony McCarten.

The prize for best comedy/musical film went to The Grand Budapest Hotel, a stylish caper starring Ralph Fiennes, while Amy Adams won best actress in a musical/comedy for art fraud film Big Eyes.

New Zealand singer Lorde - whose single Yellow Flicker Beat from the third Hunger Games film was nominated for best original song - lost out to John Legend and Common for their song Glory in the film Selma.

Lorde on the red carpet at the Golden Globes. Photo: AFP

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler Photo: AFP

Pledge for free speech

Comic duo Tina Fey and Amy Poehler opened the three-hour show with a sharp monologue poking fun at the Sony Pictures hack and the firestorm over The Interview, a farce about killing North Korea's leader.

The hosts joked that the evening was to celebrate "all the movies that North Korea was okay with".

The evening took a more serious turn when the head of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) - which hands out the Globes - brought the audience to its feet with a pledge to support freedom of expression in the wake of both the Sony hack and the French attacks.

"Together we will stand united against anyone who will repress free speech, anywhere, from North Korea to Paris," HFPA chief Theo Kingma said.

George Clooney, upon accepting the Cecil B DeMille award - an honorary Golden Globe for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment - also voiced his support, saying: "Je suis Charlie."

On the red carpet, several stars including Mr Clooney and his wife Amal, Helen Mirren and Kathy Bates displayed the "Je Suis Charlie" slogan, which has become a rallying cry in the wake of the deadly gun attack on French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo.

Actor George Clooney (L) and Amal Clooney. Photo: AFP

Actress Amy Adams holds the award for Best Actress. Photo: AFP

Amazon breaks through

On the small screen, online retail giant Amazon scored its first ever Golden Globe for best comedy series Transparent - a breakthrough in its bid to catch up with streaming pioneer Netflix.

The series, starring Globe winner Jeffrey Tambor, tells the story of a man who has transitioned to become a woman and is working out the thorny details of telling his family.

"This is dedicated to too many trans people that died too young," series creator Jill Soloway said.

"Maybe we'll be able to teach the world something about authenticity and truth and love."

Netflix also took home a Globe for House of Cards star Kevin Spacey, named best actor in a television drama.

Showtime's The Affair won two Globes for best drama series and best actress Ruth Wilson.

Unlike the Oscars, which are voted on by some 6000 industry members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Globes are selected by fewer than 100 journalists from the HFPA.

But a Globe win can still provide a huge boost for an Oscar campaign. Oscar nominations will be announced on Thursday. The Academy Awards will then be held on 22 February.